Luis Rubiales has been elected new permanent President of the Spanish Football Association (RFEF).
The former Levante player, who had a brief spell in Scotland with Hamilton Academicals in 2009, is the former President of the Association of Spanish Footballers (AFE) and defeated interim President Juan Luis Larrea by 80 votes to 56 at the election held in Las Rozas.
However, Rubiales’ term at the helm is only set to run until 2020, when there will be a fresh vote, given that the Spanish FA’s presidential elections and the regional federation elections are usually held simultaneously.
Rubiales was supported by the players who voted, a few of the regions, those involved in ‘futsal’, and a few clubs who viewed his appointment as a good time for change.
The 40-year-old plans changes to the refereeing system and is also preparing a major audit to measure the true extend of the federation’s finances.
